Seeing the Prince appear, Huang Yaning couldn’t suppress the smile on her lips no matter what.
Originally, she was only ninety percent sure someone was behind the rockery, and that someone was the Prince.
But it wasn’t one hundred percent certain, so before hitting Sheng Mingzhu, she was still thinking, what if no one was behind the rockery?
Or what if the person behind the rockery wasn’t the Prince? Or what if the person behind the rockery didn’t show up? How would she excuse herself?
Unexpectedly, she was lucky and guessed everything right.
The Prince was still hopelessly devoted to Sheng Mingzhu. Shouting “Mingzhu, little sister!” he jumped into the pond without hesitation and swam towards her——
Things developed in the direction most favorable to Huang Yaning.
She turned back and whispered an order to Qingtian.
“The Prince went into the water to save her. Quickly go get some people, be quick——”
Qingtian felt as if she’d been hit on the head with a heavy club. She snapped awake instantly and ran back the way they came.
“Mingzhu, little sister!” the Prince called out.
The Dong family maintained this pond well; even at the edge, the water level seemed quite deep.
The straight-line distance between the Prince and Sheng Mingzhu was no more than twenty or thirty meters.
But because many lotus leaves blocked the way and obscured the view, the Prince couldn’t reach Sheng Mingzhu quickly.
Sheng Mingzhu splashed wildly in the water. “Brother Sheng, save me——”
“Mingzhu, little sister, don’t be afraid, I’m coming——”
What a perfect pair of a devoted lover and a willing beauty!
Huang Yaning really wanted to laugh out loud.
She just waited for the Prince to pull the dripping-wet Sheng Mingzhu out of the pond, their skin touching…
Given Sheng Mingzhu’s current ruined reputation and the frenzy of these young ladies for the Prince today…
Even if the Prince tried his best to protect Sheng Mingzhu, in the best-case scenario, Sheng Mingzhu could at most snag a secondary consort position——
If those young ladies were a bit sharper with their tongues, Sheng Mingzhu might only end up as a common concubine…
With her around, Sheng Mingzhu would never become the Prince’s principal wife in this life!
Just as she was delighting in the miserable situation soon facing Sheng Mingzhu, she heard Xiazhi’s voice beside her.
“Miss, I’m coming to save you too——”
Huang Yaning turned her head instinctively, and for a moment, she was stunned.
What did she see?
She actually saw Xiazhi wearing only a thin white undergarment.
At some point, Xiazhi had already nimbly taken off her outer clothes……
The next moment, Xiazhi jumped into the pond.
Soon, Xiazhi swam as flexibly as a mermaid and reached behind Zhu Qisheng.
The Prince was now very close to Sheng Mingzhu……
“Your Highness, you are an unrelated man, you cannot rescue my miss……”
Xiazhi said this while tightly holding onto Zhu Qisheng, forcibly stopping him from swimming forward.
Huang Yaning saw Zhu Qisheng in the pond change from a swimming posture to standing; the water only reached his chest.
This showed the water at that spot wasn’t deep enough to drown someone. Although Sheng Mingzhu was short, if she stood up straight, her head would also be above water.
Sheng Mingzhu was probably too panicked, splashing about all along.
And her splashing seemed to be getting weaker……
“Get lost——”
Seeing his beloved Mingzhu little sister seemed about to give out, Zhu Qisheng’s eyes blazed with fury, and he roared in desperation.
But how could Xiazhi let go of the tasty morsel that had fallen into her mouth?
Xiazhi not only held on tighter but also pressed her body against him as much as possible……
“Your Highness, no, men and women should not be intimate——
“Your Highness, you cannot ruin miss’s reputation. Let this servant rescue miss——”
Xiazhi was barely dressed. This action was like a beautiful snake coiling around Zhu Qisheng.
It seemed like she was playing some kind of “not suitable for children” game with Zhu Qisheng in the water……
Huang Yaning quickly covered her face with her handkerchief, just to hide the smile that was spreading to her ears.
Although things weren’t developing exactly as she had predicted, the future was long, and this current situation… was also very exciting.
At this moment, Qingtian finally returned with a group of noble ladies.
Earlier, when Sheng Mingzhu was being hit, her shrill, piercing screams had already traveled far.
Some people, hearing the sound, were curious and brought their maids and servants in this direction. They met Qingtian halfway.
Upon hearing that the Prince had jumped into the water to save Sheng Mingzhu, they were already cursing Sheng Mingzhu viciously in their hearts, thinking she was deliberately “seducing” the Prince.
Therefore, now these young ladies, who usually cared so much about their deportment, each moved as if stepping on Wind Fire Wheels, quickly arriving at the lotus pond’s edge.
The Prince in the water, hearing the words “men and women should not be intimate,” finally regained some clarity. He really couldn’t rescue her.
His position as principal wife had to be decided by the Emperor——
If he had intimate physical contact with Mingzhu little sister now, he probably wouldn’t be able to fight for the principal wife position for her.
So, he gave up.
Xiazhi knew when to stop. Only then did she go and fish out Sheng Mingzhu, who had already rolled her eyes back and was sinking.
Some servants who could swim also jumped into the pond to help, and soon they got the unconscious Sheng Mingzhu ashore.
As soon as Zhu Qisheng came up, he stared worriedly at Sheng Mingzhu, who was laid on the ground, anxiously sending for the mansion physician, getting a cloak, boiling ginger tea……
Xiazhi covered Sheng Mingzhu tightly with her own light green outer garment she had taken off earlier.
Then she began to press on Sheng Mingzhu’s abdomen, trying to get her to expel the water she had swallowed.
The watching noble ladies had mixed thoughts.
Some were delighted that although the Prince had entered the water and seemed very concerned about Sheng Mingzhu, he hadn’t actually touched her in the end.
Sheng Mingzhu was rescued by her maid and servants, so she couldn’t possibly cling to the Prince.
Others glanced at the Prince from the corners of their eyes. His clothes were wet and clinging to his body, vaguely showing the firm muscles of his chest……
They peeked while covering their faces, probably because their cheeks were burning——
The remaining, more scheming women stared at Xiazhi with eyes that seemed to spit fire.
Because Xiazhi was too “shameless” right now.
With wet hair, her white undergarment clung tightly to her body, outlining her shapely figure.
Under the undergarment, one could vaguely see a pink bellyband……
Some people silently despised this pair of mistress and maid: the mistress was shameless, and the maid was even more brazen!
Fortunately, servants from the Dong residence soon brought several cloaks, and all three who had fallen into the water put them on.
At this moment, Sheng Mingzhu coughed and spat out water as she gradually opened her eyes.
“Mingzhu little sister! You’re finally awake! Great——Do you feel unwell anywhere——”
Seeing her awake, Zhu Qisheng breathed a sigh of relief and asked with concern.
“Brother… Sheng……
“I almost… died…… I was so scared……”
Sheng Mingzhu’s voice and eyes were full of grievance and attachment. As she spoke, two lines of tears fell……
This time, Sheng Mingzhu wasn’t deliberately pretending to be pitiful to gain sympathy. Having just walked through the gates of hell, her current behavior was purely instinctive.
“Don’t be afraid, the doctor will be here soon. You’ll be fine……”
The Prince said softly, the tenderness in his eyes and brows almost overflowing.
If someone didn’t know better, hearing their conversation and seeing their expressions, they’d think Sheng Mingzhu and the Prince were husband and wife……
Many noble ladies were so angry they could grind their teeth.
Finally, someone couldn’t help but ask, her tone somewhat aggressive.
“Sixth Miss Sheng, how did you fall into the lotus pond?”
